


Stories For Monday

by astrodrag



Category: RuPaul's Drag Race RPF
Genre: F/F, Summer Camp AU, and they're all lowkey gay for each other, but everyone's gay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2020-06-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:29:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24496492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/astrodrag/pseuds/astrodrag
Summary: Jaida, Jan, Jackie, Crystal, Nicky, and Gigi are childhood best friends who grew up going to summer camp together. Now, they're all in college and it's their turn to be counselors at the camp that brought them together.
Relationships: Gigi Goode/Jan Sport, Jackie Cox/Nicky Doll, Jaida Essence Hall/Crystal Methyd, Monét X Change/Nina West
Comments: 24
Kudos: 52





	1. Back to the place that we always go / bathing suit

**Author's Note:**

> Wrote this for @/writethehousedown's Summer Lovin' Week over on Tumblr!  
> A huge thank you to Mac for being an amazing beta for this fic, and for making such wonderful moodboards to go along with it (that you can see on tumblr)!  
> Fic title taken from the album Stories For Monday by The Summer Set, chapter titles taken from songs from the album!  
> 

If Jan’s life were a movie, she swore  _ Walking on Sunshine  _ would have been blasting at full volume as she got out of bed that morning. She’d dance around her room as it played, getting ready for the day in record time before flying down the stairs to go meet her best friend outside.

But her life wasn’t a movie, so instead Jan woke up to a loud banging on her bedroom door and the unmistakable sound of Jaida and her younger brother screaming at each other in the hallway as something hit the wall with a  _ thud _ . Jan had just enough time to groan and pull her blanket over her head before Jaida was in her room, dropping onto the bed as her hands grabbed Jan’s shoulders to shake them.

“Wake  _ up  _ sleeping beauty! You and I have got to get on the road in three hours, and I know for a  _ fact _ you haven’t packed shit yet!” If Jan hadn’t still been half asleep, she would have laughed at Jaida’s words, or attempted to defend herself by saying she had at  _ least _ made sure to pack her hairbrush into her suitcase after having forgotten the item the past two summers in a row. Instead, she just let out another groan and attempted to burrow further into her bed. 

Jaida made a disapproving  _ tsk, tsk _ noise before abruptly tearing the blanket off of Jan, which caused Jan to immediately let out a shriek. Her hands flew to try to grab the blanket back, but it was no use - Jaida had thrown the blanket onto the floor, and was chuckling to herself as Jan scowled up at her. 

Jan reluctantly sat up, but not without grabbing a pillow to hit Jaida’s shoulder with. It was Jaida’s turn to glare at Jan, but it didn’t last long, because next thing Jan knew she was being physically pulled up out of bed by Jaida and pushed towards the bathroom.

“Go. Get. Ready!” Jaida insisted, giving Jan one final push as she stumbled into the bathroom, catching herself on the sink so she wouldn’t trip. By the time Jan looked at herself in the mirror, her fatigue had begun to dissipate, instead replaced by a bubbling sense of excitement as the realization settled over her. Within a few hours’ time, she and Jaida would be embarking on their annual mini road trip to Camp Daybreak. Three hours on the highway and another hour driving through backwoods, and they would be back at their home away from home, reunited with friends they had known since they were little kids. To say Jan was excited was an understatement, the blonde letting out a squeal before turning the shower on.

No matter what happened, she was determined to make it a good summer.

* * *

By the time Jan got back to her bedroom, patting her hair dry with a towel as she walked, Jaida had laid out half the things she’d need for camp on her bed and had taken up residence sitting at Jan’s vanity. Jan’s eyes quickly scanned the piles before throwing the damp towel into her laundry hamper, impressed by Jaida’s work. She had laid out all of Jan’s old camp shirts, pulled out damn near every pair of shorts she owned, and had tossed a couple pairs of sneakers into a heap on the floor beside Jan’s bed.

“Someone was busy,” Jan mused, leaning against the doorframe as Jaida rolled her eyes with a playful smirk tugging at her lips.

“Well  _ someone  _ had to make sure you had clothes to wear this summer. I’m not letting you steal my damn shorts again, Janet,” Jaida quipped back, pointing to a pair of denim shorts she had set beside her on the vanity for emphasis.

“In my defense, I could’ve sworn I had already given those back to you,” Jan laughed as she held her hands up in mock surrender.

“ _ Child _ ,” Jaida drawled as she shook her head. “Just finish packing bitch, I’m gonna go raid your folks’ pantry for snacks so we don’t have to stop at some sketchy gas station 10 minutes into the trip.”

Jan watched as Jaida stood up and padded out of the bedroom, not without playfully slapping her ass as she passed by. Jan let out a surprised yelp followed by laughter, shooting Jaida a look as she swatted at her friend’s arm.

“Keep your damn hands to yourself!” Jan called out, shaking her head lightheartedly. “Save that hanky-panky for when Crystal’s around!”

Jan watched as Jaida stopped dead in her tracks at the top of the stairs and slowly turned, her face scrunched up in one of her infamous death stares. She locked eyes with Jan, and before Jan had a chance to react, Jaida was charging at her, muttering about how she was gonna kick Jan’s ass for mentioning Crystal because that was a  _ one-time thing.  _

Jan let out a shriek, running into her room in an attempt to escape her friend’s wrath. But then Jaida grabbed her by the waist and tackled her onto the bed, the two girls landing on top of the stacks of clothing with Jaida on top of Jan. They locked eyes for a split second before the pair dissolved into a fit of laughter, Jaida allowing herself to completely collapse on top of Jan.

Their laughter stopped the moment they heard someone clear their throat just outside Jan’s bedroom door. Both girls immediately looked towards the door to see Jan’s little brother, Jared, standing in the hallway, still in his pajamas.

“Gay,” he deadpanned, rolling his eyes before walking away without another word. 

“Jared!” Jan gasped, throwing one of her pillows at the doorway in vain, the pillow falling to the floor without ever even coming near hitting Jan’s brother.

“You’re a little bitch, Jared!” 

“ _ Jaida! _ ”

* * *

Once Jan had finished packing, she and Jaida began dragging her bags down the stairs to load them into the back of Jaida’s old Wagoneer. One suitcase, two duffle bags, and a backpack later, and they had managed to stuff everything into the back with Jaida’s multitude of bags.

“Damn, Jai, how much did you pack?” Jan teased, closing the hatch on the back of the old Jeep.

“Just the essentials,” Jaida replied with a shrug. She leaned against the side of her hand-me-down car, twirling the keys around her index finger as Jan moved around the side of the car.

“Mhmm, sure,” Jan hummed, shaking her head in disbelief. 

Before Jaida had a chance to make a witty comeback, Jan’s parents stepped out onto the front porch to wish the two girls a final goodbye and a safe trip. Jan took the opportunity to run up the steps and hug them both; Jaida, on the other hand, gave them a friendly wave before sliding into the driver’s seat of her car and turning the vehicle on.

Evidently their hugs were taking longer than Jaida anticipated, because soon Jan could hear the distinct sound of Jaida’s horn ringing through the air. She let out a laugh as her dad yelled at Jaida to give them all one more minute, then they could go.

“Have a good summer, honey,” Jan’s mother hummed, giving her one final squeeze.

“I will! I promise,” Jan reassured her, hastily pressing kisses to both of her parents’ cheeks as she murmured her final goodbyes to them. It felt weird for Jan to be spending her final summer of college away from her family, but at the same time, she couldn’t imagine spending it any other way. Camp Daybreak had made her into the person she was then, and without the camp, she doubted she ever would have become such close friends with Jaida - or any of the others she and her best friend were set to meet up with in a few hours. 

Flashing her parents one last smile, Jan turned and eagerly darted towards Jaida’s car before hopping into the passenger’s seat.

“Camp Daybreak, here we come!” She squealed excitedly, drumming her hands against the dashboard as Jaida pulled out of the driveway.

* * *

It wasn’t until they stopped at a gas station about an hour from Jan’s house that she realized she had  _ still  _ managed to forget something, even with Jaida helping her pack.

“Damn it!” She exclaimed, making Jaida stick her head out of the window of her car, glancing at Jan beside the gas pump. “I forgot to pack a bathing suit.”


	2. When you're looking back at seventeen, life is but a dream / camp

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title taken from "The Night Is Young" by The Summer Set. A huge thank you to Mac for being an amazing beta and for making another beautiful moodboard, which you can see over on my tumblr

By the time Jan and Jaida pulled into the clearing that served as Camp Daybreak’s staff parking lot, they had turned a 4-hour drive into 5 and a half hours with how frequently they had to stop, either so Jaida could run into a restroom somewhere or so Jan could grab  _ yet another  _ snack from a convenience store, despite not even eating half of the snacks she grabbed. 

_ “I’m stocking up for the summer!” Jan had insisted after running into her third convenience store, returning to the car with an armful of chip bags and a 12-pack of soda. _

_ “You planning on bribing the kids with Mountain Dew again this year or something?” Jaida quipped back as she shook her head, unamused. _

_ “Nah, it’s Sprite,” Jan replied, lifting the 12-pack up so Jaida could see more than just the flash of green cardboard. “Nicky texted while I was inside asking me to pick up mixers, said she’s bringing booze for when the kiddos aren’t around.” _

_ “Tell the bitch she’s a saint in my eyes,” Jaida began, excitedly drumming her hands against the steering wheel. “And hurry up, you know I refuse to drive in the dark, Janet.” _

_ “It’s not even noon yet, relax Jaida! We’ll be there long before sundown.” _

As Jaida put the car in park and turned off the engine, Jan couldn’t help but flash a shit-eating grin at the other girl.

“Seeeee?” Jan hummed, holding up her phone to show Jaida the time. “Just now 3:30.  _ Plenty  _ of time for us to unpack before our annual bonfire with the girls.”

Jaida contemplated making a witty remark about how they had  _ barely  _ made it with enough time to unpack, but before she had a chance to say anything, she could hear a series of shrieks ring out through the air. Her head immediately whipped to her left, and she let out a shriek of her own as she watched Jackie and Nicky start running towards her car, Crystal nearly tripping over a log as she attempted to follow after them. She didn’t even notice Jan move to get out of the car, just heard the passenger door slam shut, and Jaida immediately followed suit.

Within seconds, Jan and Jaida had both been enveloped in a group hug. Jan couldn’t stop the giddy feeling that rose up inside of her, not that she even wanted to in that moment. Her arms instinctively wrapped around the first person she could reach - Jackie, it turned out, who picked Jan up without a second of hesitation to spin her around. She let out a squeal of excitement, clinging to the older brunette as if her life depended on it, and waited until her feet were back on the ground to press a quick kiss to her cheek. Jan chose not to comment on the pink flush spreading across Jackie’s cheeks, instead turning to quickly pull Crystal and Nicky into hugs in turn.

She could talk to Jackie about  _ that  _ later.

They stood around Jaida’s car for a short while longer, exchanging more hugs and excited greetings as they all got reacquainted after nearly a year apart. The longer they chatted, the more Jan realized that everyone looked… different. Nicky chopped her hair off, Jackie had gotten bangs, and Crystal’s hair was suddenly bright red. They all looked  _ good _ , like they had magically had a collective second glow-up since the previous summer, and Jan was left wondering if she looked any different to her friends.

Before she had a chance to dwell on the thought, Jackie offered to help carry their stuff to the counselor’s cabin, and then the whole group was unloading suitcases, duffle bags, and far too many plastic bags of convenience store snacks from the rear end of Jaida’s car.

According to Nicky, they had gotten lucky this year; Monet and Nina (who had been running the camp ever since getting married years ago) had agreed to switch the counselors to the cabin closest to the lake, giving the girls easy access to the dock and one of the nearby bonfire pits. As Jaida saw it, they had practically been  _ given permission  _ to spend that first weekend drinking around the bonfire before the campers started showing up on Monday. 

“That is  _ so  _ not what Mrs. and Mrs. West intended and you  _ know  _ it!” Crystal insisted as they entered into what would be their cabin for the summer. Once inside, Crystal immediately climbed up the side of the bunk bed closest to the door, dramatically flopping onto the top bunk and peering over the side down at her friends. “Jackie claimed the spot below me, Nicky’s got the top bunk on the one by the bathroom. Take your pick of the remaining three beds, girls.”

Exchanging a quick glance with Jaida, Jan and her friend immediately moved toward the open bunk bed, Jan taking the lower spot while Jaida threw her bags up onto the higher bed. It had been their unspoken agreement, the way they had always chosen bunk assignments ever since they were little kids going to camp for the first time. The whole reason they became so close was because they had shared a bunk for so many years, though that first summer Jan had  _ sworn  _ she was a top-bunk kind of girl for all of a week before she begged Jaida to switch spots with her. Since then, they had always defaulted to Jan grabbing the bottom bed, while Jaida happily took the top. That would likely never change, Jan mused as she took a seat on the bed and crossed her legs.

The rest of the girls retreated to their respective bunks, all except for Jaida, who went about unpacking her bags as she chatted with the rest of the girls. Jan told herself she would unpack in the morning, though she knew she would more than likely end up living out of her suitcase the whole summer, letting Jaida take up her space in their shared dresser against the wall. 

“When’s Brita getting here?” Jaida’s question cut through the momentary silence in the room, causing Crystal to hum and shrug in indication that she didn’t know, meanwhile Jackie let out an awkward little cough.

“What do you know, bitch?” Nicky immediately asked, peering over the edge of her bunk to look down at Jackie. 

“You guys remember that Aiden girl from two summers back that Brita had a fling with?” Jackie started, pausing just long enough for the other girls to all nod eagerly, urging her to continue. “Brita texted me the other day, they’re  _ finally  _ dating now. Moved to New York and got an apartment together in Brooklyn.”

“No fucking way,” Jaida gasped, throwing a towel at Jackie instead of putting it away. Jackie narrowly missed getting hit by the towel, but threw it back without missing a beat, hitting Jaida square in the shoulder.

“ _ Yes way _ ,” Jackie insisted. Her words were followed by a chuckle as Crystal nearly hit her head excitedly sitting up to clap, and within seconds the entire group had dissolved into a fit of laughter.

They spent what felt like hours like this, chatting about other counselors who had come and gone throughout the years, as well as old friends they hadn’t seen since they were campers. Jan couldn’t stop her mind from occasionally drifting to the empty bunk below Nicky, wondering who could possibly inhabit it this year if Brita wasn’t going to join them. But every time she began to wonder, one of her friends would crack a joke or launch into a story from their childhood, and Jan was quickly drawn back into the conversation.

If nothing else, she could always ask Nina or Monet in the morning, she figured.

The moment Crystal noticed burnt orange rays of light peeking through one of the cabin windows, she started attempting to usher the girls out to the bonfire pit, insisting they had waited long enough to start their annual bonfire. She was met with a string of groans from a tired Nicky, who didn’t want to leave her bed, and protests from Jaida, who still had yet to finish unpacking her multiple suitcases. But after practically dragging Nicky down from her bed and Jackie jumping in to help Jaida put away the rest of her stuff, Crystal managed to herd the group towards the door.

Just as Jan reached to push the cabin door open for her friends, she watched the door fly open, a tall, dark-haired girl standing on the other side. She was holding a rickety cardboard box in her hands, stuff practically overflowing from the top, and had her hip jutted out to the side to keep the door from closing before she was able to push through it. Bangs obscuring her eyes, she nearly plowed right into Jan and the others, stopping just shy of collision when Crystal let out an excited squeak. 

Jan felt her heart instantly  _ plummet  _ inside her chest as she recognized who the girl was.

“Gigi!” Crystal pushed through the group as she let out a shriek, running forward to pull the dark-haired girl into a hug, accidentally causing her to drop the box to the ground with a dull thud. Unable to draw her eyes away from the brunette, Jan attempted to swallow the lump in her throat. She let herself get pushed to the side as Nicky rushed forward to join the hug and Jackie moved to pick up the miscellaneous items that had fallen out of the box when it hit the ground. Jaida, however, stayed back, silently taking Jan’s hand and giving it a light squeeze.

She had never been so grateful for Jaida’s presence before in her life.

* * *

Once Gigi had claimed the remaining bunk and unloaded all of her belongings, Jan found herself sitting on a log beside the bonfire pit, wedged comfortably between Jaida and Jackie, who each had an arm wrapped around her. She had her head resting on Jaida’s shoulder, with Jackie’s head on her own shoulder and Jaida absent-mindedly playing with her hair. Just on the other side of the bonfire, she could see Gigi excitedly chatting with Crystal and Nicky, the brunette evidently having kept in touch with them far more than she ever had with Jan.

Jan tried her best to swallow the pain of that realization, chasing it with a sip of whatever awful mixed drink Nicky had concocted for them once they got the fire started. The burn in her throat was a welcome distraction, temporarily numbing her mind enough to keep her from thinking about the last time she saw Gigi.

But only temporarily.

She heard Crystal make a comment about how it had been four years since they had all been at camp together, and Jan nearly choked on her drink as she went to take another sip. Four years.

Four years since Gigi broke Jan’s heart by making out with Nicky after nearly falling off the old tire swing by the dock. If Jan turned her head just right, she could see the tree where the tire swing once hung, only a frayed bit of rope hanging from a branch left to prove it ever existed at all. But Jan didn’t want to relive that night, didn’t want the mental image searing into her brain any more than it was already attempting to. So instead, she curled further into Jaida’s side and downed the rest of her drink, mumbling a weak  _ yes please, thank you _ when Jackie offered to refill the plastic cup she was drinking from.

This was going to be a  _ long  _ summer now that Gigi was back.


	3. And I was falling in love while you were fighting the weekend war / ice cream

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 3 weeks later and chapter 3 is finally here! It's a longer one though, so hopefully that makes up for the wait! A huge thank you, as always, to Mac for being an absolutely WONDERFUL beta!  
> Chapter title taken from "Jean Jacket" by The Summer Set.  
> 

Jan woke up the next morning with a pounding head and an aching heart.

Blinking a few times as her eyes adjusted to the light pouring through the cabin windows, Jan could see Nicky and Jackie were already awake, standing in the doorway as they whispered amongst themselves, both clutching cups of coffee in their hands. Pulling herself up out of bed, Jan wrapped her blanket around her shoulders before padding over to join her friends.

The moment Jackie saw her approaching, she flashed Jan a soft smile and opened an arm up for a hug. Jan snuggled into the older girl’s side, ignoring Nicky’s raised eyebrows at the action. Instead, she mumbled a soft  _ good morning _ and let herself fall into comfortable small-talk with the two girls.

But not even small talk could keep her mind from wandering, unable to shake the uneasy feeling that had threatened to suffocate her ever since Gigi showed up outside the cabin door. She wished she could say she hadn’t thought about Gigi in years, that the girl hadn’t crossed her mind since the summer she broke her heart, but that wasn’t true. Every so often Gigi would creep back into her thoughts, occupying her mind for a few days at a time, before disappearing once again. Since yesterday, though, Gigi had been the only thought in Jan’s mind, old memories replaying in her brain nonstop.

Summers spent holding hands and laughing as they ran around the campgrounds together as children.

Dancing with Gigi at her senior prom, the dark-haired girl immediately snaking an arm around her waist when the slow dance songs came on.

Drinking on the roof of Jaida’s house, with her head resting on Gigi’s shoulder while their friends talked about plans for their first summer as counselors at Camp Daybreak.

Watching Gigi make out with Nicky by the lake that same summer.

Jan tried to shake the memories from her brain, but it was hard with Nicky standing right there, so oblivious to the pain she had played a part in causing Jan.

She didn’t blame Nicky though - how could she? Jaida had been the only one Jan ever dared to tell about her crush on Gigi, having confessed her feelings for the dark-haired girl the day after prom when everyone went home. She could still remember the conversation, could still remember a hung-over Crystal piling into a car with Gigi as they prepared to drive back to their respective hometowns that were only thirty minutes apart. Jan had looked at Jaida after the two girls left, and she could just  _ tell.  _ She knew instantly that her finding Crystal curled up beside Jaida in her bed that morning hadn’t been an accident, that there was some unspoken  _ thing  _ going on between the two, so she told Jaida about her own crush in an attempt to console her. Though Jaida had never admitted it, Jan could tell it had made her feel the slightest bit better about her situation, knowing she wasn’t the only one who had caught feelings for a friend.

Jan was snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of Gigi’s voice by her side. She could feel her skin prickle with static electricity as Gigi leaned against the wall beside her, their arms accidentally brushing. But she tried not to dwell on the feeling that made her stomach do flips, instead curling further into Jackie’s side as she redirected her attention back to the conversation at hand.

Nicky was rambling about her drastic haircut, recounting the dramatic moment in which she had finally decided  _ fuck it, might as well _ before going into the salon to get it cut. As her friend rambled on, she couldn’t help the idea that popped into her head, begging to be discussed with the other girls. So as soon as there was a break in Nicky’s story, Jan took the opportunity to blurt her idea out.

“I want to dye my hair purple,” she announced, her eyes darting back and forth between Jackie and Nicky (she let them wander over to look at Gigi once, trying to not seem rude, but mostly kept her gaze focused on the other two girls).

“Are you  _ insane? _ ” Jackie gasped, pulling away just enough to peer down at Jan with a confused expression. Jan let out a soft whine, already missing the warmth of being cuddled up to Jackie’s side. She could feel the cool breeze blowing off the lake, and pulled her blanket tighter around herself in order to fight off the slight chill - never mind the fact that she had also convinced herself the blanket would put another layer between her and Gigi, protecting her from any other accidental brushes of skin. 

“Maybe,” Jan shrugged, an almost giddy sort of excitement bubbling up inside of her as she looked at the amazement on Nicky’s face. “I want to do it before camp starts tomorrow, make the kids recognize me as the  _ cool counselor  _ that I am.” 

Jan playfully nudged Jackie’s side, but stopped a moment later as an awkward silence fell over the group. For a split second, she wondered if she really  _ was _ insane. It’s not like Mrs. West would mind, she thought to herself. She could still remember the summer Nina showed up with neon pink hair, shocking Jan and all the other campers at the sudden change. Never in a million years had she expected Nina West  _ of all people _ to roll up to summer camp with pink hair, but she did - and she pulled it off effortlessly.

If Nina could do it, Jan figured, then so could she.

After another couple moments of silence, Nicky let out a laugh, and Jan released a breath she didn’t realize she had been holding in.

“Well, we should probably go get you some purple hair dye then, shouldn’t we?” Nicky decided, following her words with a sip of coffee. “Come on, let’s wake Jaida and Crystal and go.”

* * *

In retrospect, maybe cramming six people into Jaida’s old wagoneer and driving to the nearest Target to buy hair dye wasn’t their smartest choice. 

After browsing the shelves for what felt like  _ forever  _ trying to find the right shade of purple, Nicky had come up with the brilliant idea of pushing Jackie around in a cart - but then Crystal decided she wanted to do the same with Gigi. Before Jan knew it, she was hugging her knees to her chest as she flew down the aisle in a cart of her own, Jaida pushing her as they raced against their other friends. She let out a shriek when Jaida abruptly turned a corner, coming to a halt seconds later as a store manager stepped out into the aisle ahead of them.

Being chewed out by a Target manager at 11 in the morning was hardly how Jan wanted to spend her last day of free time before camp, but at least she wasn’t alone.

The moment the manager was out of earshot, Jan and her friends broke down laughing, leaning on each other in the middle of the aisle as they attempted to stay upright. Crystal had made the mistake of leaning against one of the now-empty carts, but it rolled out from underneath her, and she fell to the floor with a  _ thud  _ that made them all laugh even harder. Once their laughter subsided a few minutes later, Jan and Jaida helped Crystal up off the ground, and together the group made their way to the clothing section to grab Jan a swimsuit last minute before leaving the store.

Now, sitting in the bathroom with the bright purple dye on the counter in front of her, Jan was having second thoughts. 

“Come  _ on _ , Janny! Let’s do it!” Crystal whined, her words a very uniquely Crystal mixture of eagerness and frustration. Crystal snapped the band of one of her plastic gloves against her wrist for emphasis, earning her a light swat to her arm from Jaida.

“Girl, you sure you wanna do this?” Jackie asked from her spot in the doorway, Nicky elbowing her in the side for her words.

“If the bitch wants to dye her hair purple, let her do it!” The blonde insisted, flashing a smile at Jan through her reflection in the mirror.

“No, I wanna do this,” Jan decided, nodding her head definitively. “Let’s do this.”

Gigi sighed at Jan’s words, ducking out of the bathroom as Crystal cracked open the box of purple dye. Jan swallowed hard, doing her best not to take the action as a sign she was making a mistake.

She hadn’t seen Gigi in years, hadn’t spoken to her in years. Why should Jan be bothered by Gigi walking out on their hair dye adventure? As Crystal applied the first glop of dye to Jan’s blonde hair, the realization hit her. 

Maybe she still had feelings for Gigi.

* * *

By the time Jan’s hair had been dyed, washed, and dried, splotches of purple-stained nearly every surface in their bathroom. Walls, counters - even the  _ ceiling _ had a visible purple splatter on it, thanks to Jaida accidentally startling Crystal while the redhead was attempting to carefully remove her purple-stained gloves. Crystal jumped when Jaida snuck up behind her, and suddenly the glove had hit the ceiling, leaving a streak of purple on the faded off-white paint.

Jan attempted to scrub another stain off of one of the mirrors above the sinks, cleaning the surface to get a better look at her new hair color. Vibrant lavender hair framed her face, illuminated by the fluorescent lights of the bathroom. She ran her fingers through the strands, attempting to adjust to the sudden change. She wasn’t sure how she felt about it yet.

She let out a soft sigh, spinning around to walk back into the main area of the cabin, only to realize she was face-to-face with Gigi.

“Oh, hi,” Jan spluttered, hoping her face didn’t convey the amount of surprise she felt in the moment. 

“Hey,” Gigi replied, her eyes roaming over Jan’s face in a way that made the girl nearly squirm in place. Gigi had always had that kind of effect on Jan, though Jan doubted Gigi was aware of her impact. She’d done her best to hide it over the years and figured if Nicky and Jackie hadn’t picked up on it yet, she must have been doing a pretty good job keeping it to herself. But at that moment, the silence felt like it was suffocating Jan as Gigi continued to rake her eyes over the shorter girl before her lips curled up into a small smile.

“Your hair is cute,” she decided at last, playfully winking at Jan. “Purple suits you.” Without another word, Gigi strolled out of the bathroom, leaving Jan frozen in place as she stared at the doorway.

_ What the fuck was that about? _

* * *

The first day of camp was always chaotic. Kids of all ages running around wildly, parents asking for directions, and the occasional sound of a baby crying mixing with horns honking everywhere. It was a mess, but the kind of mess that Jan thrived under.

She had taken up the job of directing people from the parking lot, standing just off the sidewalk with a large, colorful sign in her hands. She had gotten ready in record time that morning, throwing on her bright blue counselor’s shirt and a pair of denim shorts long before most of her friends had even woken up. Her hair color was quickly growing on her, being able to see the purple locks out of the corner of her eyes brought a smile to her face.

And evidently, it was also a hit with the campers. Throughout the morning, she had several returnees run up to compliment her hair before running back to rejoin their parents. It put a smile on her face that felt like it could last forever.

Eventually, the parking lot cleared out and the parents stopped rolling up to her with a million questions on where to go, so Jan grabbed her sign and all but skipped over to the pavilion where all the campers had begun to congregate. Even from a distance, she could see them all circled around Crystal, who was wearing a neon orange camp shirt and the chunkiest vintage earrings Jan had ever seen - and that was saying a lot, since Crystal had always been fond of borderline-tacky vintage items. 

As she got closer, Jan could see Nicky and Jackie leaning against a post behind Crystal, clipboards in hand. Since Jan couldn’t see her, she presumed Jaida was off pulling coolers full of ice cream sandwiches out of the giant freezer in the mess hall, which left Gigi standing at the edge of the group, her tall frame towering over all the children sitting on the concrete. Maybe against her better judgment, Jan moved to stand beside Gigi, telling herself it was just because she didn’t want to step over kids in order to join Nicky and Jackie.

Sure, that was it. Convenience.

The moment she paused beside Gigi, however, Jan found herself questioning her decision as Gigi flashed her a grin and lightly elbowed her in the side.

“They’re so cute, aren’t they?” The dark-haired girl cooed, her head nodding towards a group of four girls who were all sat beside each other and holding hands. “Reminds me of us back in the day. You were always  _ so  _ excited, remember the year your mom made us all take a group photo and you insisted on hugging me in it like we were going to prom or something? God, talk about the good old days.”

Gigi’s words felt like a sucker punch to Jan’s stomach. She could  _ vividly  _ remember the year she was talking about - they had just turned 13, and Jan had been practically  _ buzzing  _ with excitement at the thought of seeing her crush at camp again. Of course, she hadn’t told anyone about her crush - she was old enough to know that it wasn’t  _ normal  _ for her to be crushing on girls, and was too worried about the possibility of her friends and family hating her for liking girls to say anything to anyone. But Gigi didn’t know that, didn’t know Jan hadn’t wanted to let go because even at 13 she had been completely head-over-heels for the dark-haired girl. So Jan just laughed her words off, trying to suppress the sharp pain in her chest.

They fell silent after that, watching as Nicky and Jackie swapped spots with Crystal to lead the morning introduction. At the very least, Jan was grateful for the distraction, and for the semi-comfortable silence that fell between her and Gigi. 

This she could handle. More trips down memory lane though? She wasn’t so sure about those.

* * *

After introducing Nicky and Jackie to all the campers, Crystal had quickly slipped away from the pavilion. She had led her fair share of the  _ welcome to camp  _ talks, she knew the script by heart. Sure, trying to make two people volley back and forth while talking about conduct and behavior expectations could lead to some confusion, but if anyone could pull it off, she knew it would be Nicky and Jackie.

They had always complimented each other perfectly, if Crystal said so herself. Something about watching them dance around each other throughout the years had convinced Crystal that they were perfect together - or maybe it was the fact that time and time again, she had accidentally stumbled upon them comforting one another after having their heart broken, only to watch them spring away from one another when she walked into the room. Though she pretended not to notice, Crystal wasn’t blind. No, she was just biding her time until she could give them the little friendly shove they so clearly needed to see they were meant for each other.

Crystal wished someone would give her and Jaida that same push though.

She let out a sigh at the thought, dragging her feet through the grass as she made her way towards the mess hall to check on Jaida. She had always been sure of her feelings for the other girl, had made them as apparent as she could without looking like she was hopelessly pining after her friend. 

There were  _ so  _ many times Crystal could have told Jaida, but every time she came close to telling the other girl, something always stopped her. A friend walking in, a phone ringing - there was always some distraction that made them pull away from each other at the last second, and it was starting to drive Crystal insane. 

As she pushed through the door of the mess hall and made a beeline for the kitchen in the back, Crystal swore she would make a move on Jaida by the end of the summer, even if it was the last thing she did. Crystal looked around once she stepped into the kitchen, scanning the area for any sign of Jaida. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the door to the walk-in freezer propped open, and without a second thought padded over to it.

She couldn’t help the soft smile that appeared on her face at the sight of Jaida standing up on her tip-toes, cursing under her breath as she attempted to pull a box of ice cream sandwiches off the top shelf, the box  _ just  _ barely out of reach. Without saying anything, Crystal carefully stepped over the empty boxes littering the floor and maneuvered her way over to the far wall of the freezer. She placed a single hand on top on Jaida’s shoulder as a silent indication of her presence, before climbing up onto the shelves in order to grab the box for the other girl. She had to climb up to the third shelf in order to reach it, but once Crystal had grabbed the elusive box, she hopped down and flashed Jaida a bright smile.

Jaida returned the smile, and Crystal couldn’t tell if the redness on Jaida’s cheeks was because of her or the cold. Either way, it was cute. 

Crystal tried to ignore the butterflies in her stomach as she handed the box to Jaida, feeling the hairs on her arm prick up as their fingers brushed against each other. Maybe she was too far in her head after making her resolution on the way over, but something in the air between them felt… different. Like maybe  _ this  _ would finally be her time. Not wanting to rush things, she ran a hand through her hair awkwardly and took a step backward, running right into the shelf.

“Shit!” Crystal yelped, her collision with the shelf causing a bag of ice to come tumbling down to the floor, the ice flying everywhere the moment the bag hit the ground and burst. She was about to let out another expletive when Jaida’s hands came to grip her waist, steadying her in place as the taller girl let out a laugh at the mess on the floor. 

“Mrs. West is gonna lose her shit over that,” Jaida commented, her words sending a chill down Crystal’s spine - or maybe it was the feeling of the metal shelf pressed against her back, the cold seeping through her thin t-shirt and straight to her bones.

“Oh  _ god _ ,” Crystal started, eyes wide as her hands flew up to grip her hair. “Oh fuck, you don’t actually think she’s gonna be mad about it, do you?”

“ _ Crystal _ ,” Jaida started, her eyes softening as she let out another small laugh. “It was an accident, of course she’s not  _ actually  _ going to be mad. We’ll just go pick up another bag next time we run into town, don’t worry about it.”

“Are you sure? Because I really don’t wanna make Mrs. West mad, like I really need this job for the money, but I’m not just in it for the money, you know? Like I wanted to see you, of course,” Crystal rambled, feeling her chest begin to constrict slightly as the words spilled from her mouth. But once she started talking, she couldn’t stop, despite seeing the concern written all over Jaida’s face. “And everyone else! Not just you cause that would be weird if I just wanted to see you, but not like bad weird, just-”

Just then, Crystal was cut off by Jaida’s lips pressed against her own, the shock nearly paralyzing Crystal right then and there. Was this even  _ real? _ Not wanting to let the moment slip away from her, Crystal found herself leaning up onto her tiptoes, hands placed on Jaida’s shoulders to steady herself as she kissed back. The kiss was hard and soft all at once, filled with desperation and what felt like years of repressed emotions, all of which were pouring out of them both.

They couldn’t bring themselves to pull away from each other. 

Crystal’s hands slid up to tangle themselves in Jaida’s hair as the taller girl pulled her in closer, their bodies now pressed flush against each other. Jaida tilted Crystal’s head up ever so slightly, and the redhead swore she could feel herself melting under the other girl’s touch. Crystal’s mind had gone almost completely blank, the only thought running through her brain was  _ Jaida Jaida Jaida  _ and how good it felt to  _ finally  _ be kissing her. She felt a shiver run down her spine where her body was pressed against the metal of the shelves, the rest of her body radiating an undeniable warmth. 

Time seemed to simultaneously stand still and fly by the longer they kissed.

But all too soon they had to pull away from one another, both girls panting in an attempt to catch their breath. They locked eyes for a brief second, Crystal’s lips curling up into a soft smile as Jaida flashed her a grin.

“Been wanting to do that for a while,” Jaida confessed, letting out a small chuckle.

“Me too,” Crystal agreed, her heart soaring in her chest as she spoke. A moment of silence followed, both pausing before making the unspoken agreement to finish loading the ice cream treats into the rolling cooler so they could bring them out to the campers.

* * *

Somehow, Jan had gotten assigned the role of passing ice cream sandwiches out to kids. That in and of itself was fine, but having Gigi as her partner made things...less than ideal.

Not that Gigi was bad at her job. In fact, quite the opposite was true - the kids had always LOVED Gigi, making remarks about how she reminded them of their cool older sisters or cousins. No, the problem was that Jan  _ also  _ loved Gigi, she just didn’t know how to act around the other girl without making it glaringly obvious.

Luckily for Jan, it was easy enough to fall into a rhythm. Take the treat ticket from the kid, hand them an ice cream sandwich, send them on their way. Every so often one of the younger campers needed help starting to open the wrapper, but other than that, it was a fairly easy job. Or it was, until one of the campers got mad at Jan for only  _ partially  _ opening the wrapper for him instead of opening the whole thing. Stomping his foot, his face grew red quickly as he spiraled into a temper tantrum. 

Before Jan had a chance to calm him down and send him on his way, he threw the partially opened ice cream sandwich at Jan, who felt a surge of anger run through her own body as the ice cream splattered against her shirt, sticking to the fabric for several seconds before dropping to the ground. Jan opened her mouth to say something, shock and anger coursing through her veins, but was quickly cut off by Nicky calling out the kid’s name from a distance. The little boy spun around, looking up at the blonde, guilt in his eyes.

“Kevin! What on earth did you do that for?” Nicky chastised him, perfectly clicking her tongue in disapproval. “Apologize to Ms. Jan right now, or no more ice cream for the rest of the week.”

Nicky was far better at chastising the campers than Jan had ever been, and that moment was no exception. The little boy mumbled a frustrated apology before storming off, leaving Jan staring down at the stain on her shirt. She let out a sigh of frustration, lifting her head to make eye contact with Nicky, who nodded at her to go back to their cabin and clean up. She mouthed a quick  _ thank you  _ and raised her hands, pulling the total mom move of  _ raising the roof  _ in gratitude as she stood up. She swung her leg over the bench she was sitting on, being careful to avoid stepping in the ice cream on the ground as she quickly wove her way through the thinning crowd of children under the pavilion, high-fiving Nicky as the other girl passed her on the way to take over her job.

She jogged back to their shared cabin, being careful to avoid letting whatever ice cream was still on her shirt drip onto the floor once she pushed through the front door. Jan paused briefly once inside, contemplating whether she should try to wash the shirt off or just change into a new shirt. After a couple seconds, she decided on the latter of the two options and made her way over to her suitcase to find a different counselor shirt.

Jan pulled her now-stained shirt off over her head, discarding it on the floor as she made the mental note to soak it in the bathroom sink before leaving. However, as she started digging through her suitcase, she heard the cabin door creak as it opened, causing Jan’s head to immediately whip around to see who was walking in on her.

_ Gigi.  _

Jan let out a surprised shriek, her hands latching onto the first piece of fabric she could find in her suitcase before hastily attempting to cover her exposed bra with it. It didn’t  _ quite _ work according to plans as Jan soon realized, dropping the underwear she had grabbed the moment she realized what she was holding.

By that point, it was too late to grab anything else. Gigi was staring at her in confusion, one eyebrow quirked upwards, and Jan just wrapped her arms around herself in a last-ditch effort to cover herself up.

“What are you doing, fucking  _ following  _ me?” Jan asked, her voice several notes higher than her usually chipper tone.  _ Smooth, Jan _ she thought to herself, mentally cursing her choice of words.

“I -” Gigi started, clearly taken aback by the harsh words the purple-haired girl had uttered. “I just came to help you clean up, but I can leave if you don’t want me here.” The hurt was evident in Gigi’s tone, causing Jan to cast her eyes downward and bite her bottom lip in embarrassment.  _ Yeah, real fucking smooth. _

“Sorry,” Jan murmured, letting out a soft sigh. “You can stay, I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that.”

She could see how conflicted the dark-haired girl was, it was written all over her face. For a second, Jan swore her heart stopped beating. She held her breath until Gigi seemed to resolve her conflicted feeling, shrugging after a long moment. 

“It’s fine,” Gigi murmured at last, leaning against the post of the bed she stood beside. “Want me to rinse your shirt then throw it in the wash?”

Jan nearly let out a sigh of relief, nearly did a dance right there in the middle of their cabin while still shirtless. But she held back, only allowing herself to smile softly at the other girl. Though it had been years since she had seen Gigi, she still knew the other girl well enough to be able to tell that she wasn’t mad at her. Or at least, Jan  _ hoped  _ she still knew Gigi that well.

She didn’t want to dwell on that.

“Yeah, that’d be great if you could. Thanks,” Jan replied, picking the shirt up off the floor before handing it to Gigi. Their fingers brushed as she passed the shirt over, electricity sparking up her arm at the brief contact. She tried to dismiss it as a static shock or some figment of her imagination, but it was hard to ignore the way the hairs on the back of her neck seemed to stand on her end, or the way she felt a rush of heat coursing through her body just from a touch.

She was not going to let herself be  _ that  _ kind of hopeless lesbian.

But it was hard with Gigi looking at her so intently, blue eyes unwavering in their focus.

“Yeah, no problem,” she replied with ease, flashing Jan a cheeky grin out of nowhere. She turned to make her way to the bathroom, but Jan saw her pause in the doorway, looking at her over her shoulder. “Cute bra, by the way. Didn’t peg you for a white lace kind of gal.”


End file.
